Attorney gets prison in Syracuse-area mortgage frauds

Authorities say a 56-year-old attorney is losing her license and going to state prison for her role in mortgage frauds perpetrated against lenders and first-time home buyers.

The New York attorney general's office says Theresa Sanders, of Fabius, and four others pleaded guilty to felonies, including another attorney, an appraiser, a refinancing loan processor and a property manager.

An Onondaga County judge has sentenced Sanders to at least two years and four months in state prison. She is also ordered to pay nearly $600,000 in restitution.

Authorities say she led the ring that bought dozens of dilapidated homes from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, re-appraised them higher, obtained mortgages and advertised the properties as rent-to-own for people with low credit, whom they saddled with two mortgages.